Our Fires Still Burn: The Native American Experience

Detroit filmmaker Audrey Geyer's documentary about contemporary Native American life in Michigan profiles several individuals, most of whom are members of the Potowatomi and Saginaw Chippewa tribes. Scott Badenoch, CEO of his own company, recalls a childhood divided between the Chicago suburbs of his father and the Ojibwa reservation of his mother. For him, this was the best of both worlds, except for when his uncle got drunk and became abusive (his mother also tore up the family photo collection while on a bender). Like Badenoch, youth advocate Lee Ruffino grew up in a mixed household, but even after her parents divorced, she still felt more of a connection to her father's native culture. Levi Rickert, a news editor, and his sister, Jessica, a tribal dentist, remember their grandmother's stories about the infamous Mount Pleasant Boarding School, where native children bore number tattoos. Hunter Genia, a behavioral health administrator, believes that the boarding school years contributed to many of the problems his people have grappled with ever since, such as drinking, depression, teen suicide, and high dropout rates. Dennis Kequom Sr., a tribal chief, and Louanne Bruner, a tribal council treasurer, also discuss the rise of casinos in Isabella County, which have provided much-needed jobs. On the whole, the interviews here are compelling, so it's a shame that Geyer spends so much time on an ancient healing fire-keeping ceremony—impeding the flow from speaker to speaker, whose voices may be regional but have much to say of universal interest. A strong optional purchase. Aud: C, P. (K. Fennessy)